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A carbon footprint is the amount of carbon dioxide and other carbon compounds emitted due to the consumption of fossil fuels by a particular person or group. The carbon footprint is the primary event associated with climate change, which leads to global warming. Consequences from increasing the carbon footprint are climate change, malnutrition, drought, and more. The best ways to reduce one’s carbon footprint is to turn off lights and lower the amount of water usage.

The carbon footprint is one of the most common measures of the effect of an entity upon the environment. According to “The Importance of Reducing a Carbon Footprint” by Alyssa Morse, “According to the World Health Organization, climate change is projected to increase the percentage of people in Mali suffering from hunger from 34 percent to at least 64 percent 40 years from now. An increase in malnutrition is caused by the result of climate change on food crops, such as drought that interferes with the growing season. Vector-borne diseases such as malaria are increasing as the temperature increases allowing malarious mosquitoes to survive in countries previously too cool for them.” It is important to reduce one’s carbon footprint because it is has an important role in helping the Earth trap and retain heat for life. By reducing carbon footprints, the amount of carbon dioxide that is emitted into the atmosphere could be reduced. As stated by COTAP (Carbon Offsets to Alleviate Poverty), “Turn off lights you’re not using and when you leave the room, when possible, walk or ride your bike in order to avoid carbon emissions completely, don’t set the thermostat too high or too low, and add solar panels to the roof of your home.” Other ways to reduce one’s carbon footprint are to lower one’s water usage because as temperature increases, evaporation increases, leading to drought. Another way to reduce one’s carbon footprint is to reuse and recycle because by buying used products and reselling or recycling items that are no longer in use, people can dramatically reduce the carbon footprint.

There are multiple effects of climate change due to one’s carbon footprint. According to “Carbon Footprint – Climate Change“, “The IPPC reported in their 5th Assessment Report that since 1880, there has been an increase in average surface temperature of 0.85 degrees Celsius. This may seem like a small number compared to changes in daily temperature; however, to put it into comparison how small global temperature changes can have a large effect, if the Earth’s surface temperature was lowered by 5 degrees Celsius it would be in a full ice age.” Other changes that are currently occurring are increases in sea level, sea surface temperature, reduction in sea ice, and change in precipitation. As stated by the U.S. Energy Information Administration, greenhouse gas emissions have been on the rise since industrialization, suggesting that humans are to blame for much of the greenhouse gas production. Global warming can cause catastrophic weather events such as flooding, water shortages and disturbed ecosystems. As the global temperature continues to increase, the severity of these consequences increases. It is important for each individual to understand the consequences of having a big carbon footprint, because each person’s impact can make the future either more positive or more negative.

Many say that global warming is not as much of a hot issue as others think it is, but if one does not reduce the carbon footprint, the air pollutants will be harmful the human health. By reducing greenhouse gas emissions, it could prevent more than half a million premature deaths. It is also important to reduce carbon footprint, because it could slow down the climate change which would be beneficial for health. There are a lot of consequences when it comes down to not reducing carbon footprints.

In summary, reducing one’s carbon footprint would be advantageous to the environment. By reducing one’s carbon footprint, the future will become brighter and more beautiful.